Category: Shipley

Shipley – February 2018

Say hello to Stan the Man, the Shipley surgery Pet of the Month for February 2018.

Stan is an unusual young man, as he suffers from Cerebellar Hypoplasia. This is a condition similar to ataxic cerebral palsy in humans. As a result, Stan’s movement can appear uncoordinated and jerky. Thankfully, this condition is not one that worsens over time and causes no pain to the sufferer. This means that Stan will be able to live a long and happy life, though he is limited to an indoor lifestyle, as going outside would put him at risk of harm.

Stan recently came to see us for a health check. Thankfully, we were able to give him the all clear, though he could do with losing a little bit of weight! He is such a happy little chap, and we think he is ever so handsome and easy to spoil. After all, who could say no to that beautiful face? In order to reduce Stan’s weight to an ideal range, we have recommended a reduction in his feeding levels. We have also suggested an increase in exercise. Luckily for Stan, this will result in even more playtime with the little cat pals he lives with, as well as his fantastic owner!

By regularly examining your pets, we are in the best position to identify small changes before they become big problems. Typically, pets only get one health check a year, at the time of their booster. Our Pet Health Club members, however, receive a 6 monthly health check as part of their membership. This gives you a chance to ask the vet any questions you may have and it gives us a chance to check your pet over and give them a good fuss!

Shipley – January 2018

Meet Bobby the Labrador, the Shipley surgery Pet of the Month for January 2018.

11-year-old Bobby came to see us towards the end of 2017 after his owner noticed a growth in his mouth. We also noted that his teeth could do with a scale and polish. Because of the position of the lump and the need for dental work, we booked Bobby in for an anaesthetic.

A few weeks later, Bobby came back in for surgery. Since his last visit, a wart-like lump on his nose had started to grow. Because of the speed of growth of this lump, Bobby’s owner asked us to remove this during the anaesthetic. Thankfully, we were able to remove both lumps fairly easily before sending them off to the lab. We also gave Bobby’s teeth a good clean and removed a single tooth that had started to cause problems. Once this work was finished, we woke Bobby up from his anaesthetic and, later that day, sent him home.

A few days later, we saw Bobby back for a follow-up examination. He had recovered really well from his anaesthetic and was eating well. We also checked the sites of his lump removals and tooth extraction, which were starting to heal well. Shortly after this visit, we received the lab results from Bobby’s lumps. Thankfully, there was nothing serious to report, so we would not need to put Bobby through any further treatment.

The following week, Bobby came to see us again to have his stitches removed. His surgical wounds had healed nicely and he was doing really well at home. Throughout his treatment, Bobby was a great patient and coped really well, despite his age. Because of this, we think he’s a worthy winner of our Pet of the Month award. Well done Bobby!

Shipley – December 2017

Meet Spike, the Shipley surgery Pet of the Month for December 2017. Spike first came to see us back in November after his owner noticed an infected wound on his leg. Due to the small puncture wound, it is likely that this was caused by something like a cat bite. In order to properly flush and clean the wound, we would need to admit Spike to have an anaesthetic.

The next morning, Spike was back for his anaesthetic. During the surgery, we were able to remove a large amount of pus from the wound, before flushing it with an antibacterial solution. We also removed some dead tissue from around the wound. After stitching the wound up, we were able to send Spike home later that day. He was to wear a buster collar to keep him from messing with the wound, and given a course of antibiotics to prevent further infection.

Unfortunately, the following day, Spike was back again. Being the mischevious boy that he is, he had managed to get his buster collar off and reopen his wound! Because of the damage that he had done to the wound, it was necessary for us to book Spike in again for another anaesthetic. The next day, Spike had his second anaesthetic. Again, we fully cleaned the wound before removing any damaged tissue and stitching it up.

Over the next few days, Spike kept his buster collar in place and his wound began to heal. Just over a week after his second surgery, we were able to remove his stitches. The wound had healed up nicely and was showing no further sign of infection.

After the ordeal of two surgeries, two days apart, we think Spike is a worthy winner of our Pet of the Month award. Well done Spike!

Shipley – November 2017

This is Jade, a 5-month-old kitten that is the Shipley surgery Pet of the Month for November 2017.

Jade and her sister Jessie came in to see us recently for neutering. This is normally a routine procedure with a very low risk of complications. Prior to every surgery, we perform a full clinical examination. We followed this procedure as normal with both Jade and Jessie, with both appearing to be in good health. We first neutered Jessie, with her operation going as smoothly as expected. The next surgery was Jade’s.

Anaesthetic Trouble

Unfortunately, part way through Jade’s anaesthetic, she ran into complications. Due to the close monitoring of Jade’s vital signs, the nursing team were able to quickly alert the operating vet to the problem. Thanks to this quick response, the team were swiftly able to stabilise Jade. We then administered intravenous fluids to help her recover. Because of the complications that Jade experienced, we also needed to help Jade to bring her temperature back up to within a more normal range.

During anaesthetics, patients are unable to regulate their body temperature as normal, so it is crucial that Nurses and Nursing Assistants regularly check for any changes. To keep Jade cosy we used lots of blankets and wrapped her feet up to stop heat leaving her extremities. We had already placed her on a heat mat prior to the surgery but added warmed wheat sacks to increase her temperature. After a short while, her temperature began to rise and soon returned to normal. By this time Jade had woken up and was happily purring away.

Recovery

When the vet was happy Jade wasn’t going to have any further problems, we popped her back in her kennel. Almost immediately, she began purring and demanding cuddles. She had no idea of the complications that had occurred while she was under anaesthetic! We then took her off her fluids and reunited her with her sister. Once they were fully awake, we gave them both some tasty dinner and closely monitored them for the rest of the day. Fortunately, there were no further complications and all that the pair needed were cuddles and attention. Both Jade and her sister Jessie had no idea they had caused such a fuss and were overjoyed when their owner came to collect them. It’s lucky that cats have 9 lives!

Shipley – October 2017

This is Dodger, a 3-year-old Bengal cat, who is the Shipley surgery Pet of the Month for October 2017.

Dodger came to see us recently after his owners had returned from holiday to find him with a deep wound on his left foreleg. Due to the lack of other wounds, there was no indication of how he had managed to injure himself. As the wound was very deep, penetrating right down into the muscle, it was going to require stitches to fully heal. At first glance, the wound looked remarkably clean, but it was also important that we properly examined it for any foreign material. We booked Dodger in for the next day for an anaesthetic.

Dodger’s surgery

During Dodger’s surgery, we examined the wound. This was fairly tricky, as although the wound was very deep, the entry point was relatively small. Luckily we did not find any foreign material in the wound and were able to flush and clean it thoroughly. We then closed the wound, which required three layers of stitching due to its depth. For the internal sutures, we used a material that dissolves over time. For the skin sutures, a nylon material was used, which would need to be removed once the wound had healed. We were then able to send Dodger home the same day, with antibiotics to protect against infection.

Recovery

Three days later, Dodger return for a checkup. At this stage, the wound was healing well and there was no sign of inflammation or infection. A week later, he was back again. The wound was healing really well and was at the stage where we could happily remove the skin stitches.

Due to the nasty nature of Dodger’s wound, we think that he is a worthy winner of our Pet of the Month award for October 2017. Congratulations Dodger!

Shipley – September 2017

Meet Frankster the 7-year-old cat, who is the Shipley surgery Pet of the Month for September 2017.

Frankster came to see us recently after a few incidents of vomiting. He had also become lethargic and had not been eating properly. Our clinical examination revealed a neck lesion on one of his teeth. This is a condition in which the tooth is resorbed by the gum. The tooth then begins to break down, which can cause serious discomfort. Although this would explain Frankster’s lack of appetite, it would not normally be a cause for vomiting. To check that there was no underlying medical condition, we decided to send some of his blood for testing. This would also ensure that Frankster was well enough to undergo a general anaesthetic for his dental procedure. We also prescribed some pain relief and antibiotics. These would make Frankster’s mouth less painful so that he could eat, and tackle any infection within the neck lesion.

Frankster’s blood test results came back within the expected ranges, so we were safe to go ahead with his dental procedure. He had also responded well to his medication, which was a good indicator that dental surgery would resolve his symptoms.

Dental Surgery

Shortly after reporting Frankster’s blood results to his owner, we booked him in for dental surgery. While he was under anaesthetic, we were able to remove the problem tooth. During this closer examination, we also discovered an issue with another of his teeth, which we were then able to remove. We then gave Frankster’s remaining teeth a thorough scale and polish to best protect them against future problems. Later that day, we were able to send him home to recover.

Frankster has since made a full recovery and is back to his old self. As you can see above, he is quite the laid back lad and is a worthy winner of our Pet of the Month award. Well done Frankster!

Shipley – August 2017

This beautiful girl is Hettie-Bell, who is the Shipley surgery Pet of the Month for August 2017.

Hettie-Bell recently came to see us with a problem tooth. While in her puppy crate, she had been trying to chew her way out and managed to fracture one of her canine teeth. As you can imagine, this was very painful. Sometimes we are able to wait for damaged puppy teeth to drop out of their own accord. But due to Hettie-Bell’s young age, we decided that she would have to wait too long for this to happen. As a result, we admitted her for dental surgery. Continue reading… “Pet of the Month – Hettie-Bell”

Shipley – July 2017

This beautiful lady is 12-year-old Lucy the Labrador, who is the Shipley surgery pet of the month for July 2017.

Lucy first came to visit us back in February 2017. Her owner had noticed three lumps that she had developed and wanted to have them checked. Due to her age, we decided that the best course of action was to monitor the lumps. If there were any changes, Lucy was to come back in for further investigations.Continue reading… “Pet of the Month – Lucy”